Chapter 98 - 97: Demanding Justice
Qi Yuanming’s introduction immediately made Chen Yuan feel that something was off.
He had killed Qi Yuanming’s brother-in-law, and the two had all but completely fallen out.
Yet here Qi Yuanming was, praising him in front of strangers. It was highly unusual.
Chen Yuan’s gaze then fell upon the five monks.
All five wore golden robes. The two leading them were old monks in their seventies, their auras solid and restrained. Both were great masters of the Condensing Truth Realm.
The other three were formidable Martial Monks in their forties. Their Qi and Blood surged powerfully, and one could even faintly see a sharp glimmer of Buddha Light emanating from them. A single glance was enough to tell they practiced the Buddhist Sect’s Golden Body Cultivation.
’Monks from Vajra Prajna Temple.’
Chen Yuan recognized their origins at a glance.
The monks of Vajra Prajna Temple were easy to recognize. A Martial Monk who cultivated the Vajra Zen lineage would naturally radiate a vajra-like luminescence.
This wasn’t the power of True Qi, but Vajra Power radiating from the physical body itself. It was impossible to conceal, making it extremely conspicuous.
’But Vajra Prajna Temple is far away in Qin Province. What are they doing all the way out here in Ning Province?’
The only person Chen Yuan had ever met here with ties to Vajra Prajna Temple was Uncle Zhou, the Honored Guest Elder of the Zhu Family he had destroyed.
’But that Uncle Zhou was likely an outcast from Vajra Prajna Temple, merely an Outer Disciple who had never practiced their true Core Technique.’
Just as Qi Yuanming finished speaking, a tall, powerfully built Martial Monk with a thick, curly beard suddenly rose to his feet. He took a single step forward, his eyes wide and glaring like a wrathful Vajra as he stared menacingly at Chen Yuan.
"You’re the Chen Tian who destroyed the Sun Family?"
His tone was aggressive and fierce, laden with accusation.
"And what if I am? The Sun Family was in league with the Blood God Sect. Are you, a Master, going to stand up for them?"
The Martial Monk snorted. "The Sun Family colluded with the Blood God Sect, so of course they deserved to die. Dying ten thousand times over wouldn’t be enough!
But why did you kill Brother Guang Ji of Longyou Temple? He was an innocent man!"
Chen Yuan was taken aback for a moment. He hadn’t expected the monk to be taking a stand for the old man who had tried to stop him.
"What a joke! That old monk tried to stop me from destroying the Sun Family. Why couldn’t I kill him?
The Sun Family deserved death for colluding with the Blood God Sect. Since that old monk stopped me from delivering that death, he deserved to die as well!"
Rage flared in the Martial Monk’s eyes. "But Brother Guang Ji was innocent! He was merely deceived by the Sun Family!
You could have shown him evidence of the Sun Family’s collusion with the Blood God Sect. You could have simply subdued him without taking his life.
But you just had to be so ruthless, killing Brother Guang Ji along with the rest!"
Chen Yuan scoffed. "That old monk wasn’t a three-year-old child. He had to take responsibility for his own choices.
Since he chose to believe the Sun Family and oppose me, he deserved to die!
I’m not his father. Why should I have coddled him?"
The Martial Monk was so furious he began to laugh. "Fine! Fine! Fine! You may not be one of the Blood God Sect’s demons, but with your vicious methods and your slaughter of the innocent, you’re no different from a devil!
Brother Guang Ji was brutally murdered by you, and because of that, Longyou Temple was destroyed by its enemies, its legacy wiped out.
Today, I will claim justice for Brother Guang Ji!"
The words had barely left his mouth when a blinding golden Buddha Light erupted from his body. With a roar that carried the force of Vajra Demon Suppression, he smashed his fist down toward Chen Yuan!
The two old monks from Vajra Prajna Temple hadn’t expected him to strike so quickly. They hastily shouted, "Hui Ming! Stop!"
Du Tianfeng shot a look at Qi Yuanming, his voice cold. "You did this on purpose, didn’t you?"
The whole way here, Du Tianfeng had been wondering why Qi Yuanming had taken the initiative to bring these monks to see the Hall Master. He didn’t seem the type to be so helpful.
Only now did Du Tianfeng realize that Qi Yuanming had known all along that the monk from Vajra Prajna Temple held a grudge against Chen Yuan!
Qi Yuanming drawled, "On purpose? I don’t know what you’re talking about."
In truth, Qi Yuanming hadn’t actually intended it at first.
When his subordinates told him that monks from Vajra Prajna Temple were seeking an audience, he had simply wanted to build a connection with them.
Vajra Prajna Temple might be far from Ning Province, but they were Martial Artists from one of the renowned Three Buddhist Temples. There was no harm in building a friendly relationship.
It was only later, when Hui Ming asked him about Longyou Temple, that Qi Yuanming learned the truth: Hui Ming and Monk Guang Ji, the man Chen Yuan had killed, were actually good friends.
Vajra Prajna Temple was one of the ancestral homes of the Buddhist Zen Sect. Every year, monks from all Nineteen Provinces would come to the temple to listen to sermons on Buddhist law and scripture.
In his younger days, Monk Guang Ji had traveled the Central Plains Martial World and had, of course, visited Vajra Prajna Temple to listen to the sermons of eminent monks.
Back then, Monk Guang Ji was still young, while Hui Ming was just a Little Novice Monk who had recently joined. Because his cultivation progress was slow, he was berated by a Martial Monk Instructor and had been crying secretly in a corner.
It was Monk Guang Ji who found him, offered him words of comfort, and even gave him a bottle of hard-won Elixirs. This helped Hui Ming pass the Martial Monk assessment.
The two formed a bond because of this. Afterward, whenever Guang Ji visited Vajra Prajna Temple, Hui Ming would host him with great ceremony, viewing him as both a brother and a mentor.
After learning this, Qi Yuanming had the idea to cause trouble for Chen Yuan. He subtly told Hui Ming an exaggerated version of Guang Ji’s death.
’He couldn’t make a move against Chen Yuan himself, but there was no problem if someone from Vajra Prajna Temple did it, right?’
This Hui Ming had a Sea Realm Late Stage cultivation. His Vajra Zen practice was known for being indomitable and unyielding, exceptionally fierce and powerful.
He formed the Fearless Vajra Seal, and as the Fist Seal smashed down, the whistling wind exploded with a sound that instantly filled the great hall, as deafening as the toll of a great bell.
Chen Yuan snorted. The Great Celestial Demon Seal descended, its Demon Sound wailing and its Demonic Qi erupting with violence!
The two Seal Techniques collided. Chen Yuan’s figure remained as unmovable as a mountain, but Hui Ming felt as if he had crashed into a giant peak. The rebounding force knocked him back a step, and his eyes filled with horror as he looked at Chen Yuan.
The cultivation techniques of Vajra Prajna Temple were inherently majestic and grand. Though progress was slow in the early stages, once mastered, they provided an incredibly deep foundation of Inner Strength.
Furthermore, he was at the Sea Realm Late Stage and cultivated a technique from the Vajra Zen lineage, making his physical body incomparably tough. Yet he hadn’t gained the slightest advantage against Chen Yuan; in fact, he seemed to be a notch weaker.
Hui Ming was about to attack again, but one of the old monks behind him snorted and instantly uttered a strange Brahma Sound. It exploded in Hui Ming’s ear, causing his face to pale and his stance to falter.
"Hui Ming, do not forget our temple’s mission! If you dare to indulge your personal grudge and act so recklessly again, you can go straight back to Qin Province and receive your punishment at the Precepts Institute!"
Hui Ming shot an unwilling glance at Chen Yuan before pressing his palms together and bowing his head to the old monk. "This disciple was wrong."
Qi Yuanming, watching from the side, felt it was quite a pity.
’Aren’t these monks from Vajra Prajna Temple supposed to be hot-tempered? Don’t they despise evil like a mortal enemy? Why did he back down?’
The old monk who had stopped Hui Ming addressed Chen Yuan. "Hui Ming is impulsive. Please forgive him, Lord Chen."
A faint, unreadable smile played on Chen Yuan’s lips. "It’s fine. If this Master Hui Ming wishes to seek justice, I will be more than happy to oblige and give him the justice he’s looking for!"
The old monk’s brow furrowed slightly, and his expression soured.
When he had first learned that Chen Yuan had mercilessly killed Guang Ji, he hadn’t been as furious as Hui Ming, but he had still been displeased.
Though Guang Ji was not of Vajra Prajna Temple, he was still a disciple of the Buddhist Sect who had lived an upright and honorable life. Yet Chen Yuan had struck with such viciousness, showing no mercy to a disciple of their faith.
And now Chen Yuan’s attitude was just as confrontational, which he did not like.
At this, Du Tianfeng quickly stepped in to smooth things over. "Masters, we are all here to exterminate the Blood God Sect. If we start fighting amongst ourselves, won’t we just become a laughingstock?"
The old monk nodded and said coolly, "Our priority is to exterminate the demons of the Blood God Sect."
Du Tianfeng let out a sigh of relief and quickly introduced the monks from Vajra Prajna Temple to Chen Yuan.
The two leading old monks were great masters of the Condensing Truth Realm. The one who had just spoken was named Xing Shen, and the other was Xing Nan. Both cultivated Prajna Zen.
Hui Ming and the two other middle-aged men were Martial Monks who cultivated Vajra Zen. The remaining two were named Hui Xin and Hui Jing.
But when Chen Yuan heard the reason for their visit, he frowned. Something felt off.
’Just because one of their Little Novice Monks was killed, the five of them chased the killer for a thousand li to get revenge on a demon from the Blood God Sect?’
’Vajra Prajna Temple was certainly known for its overbearing style, not tolerating any offense to its authority.’
’But this was too much. When traveling the Jianghu, people died. That was true even for those from Major Sects.’
’You go to all this trouble to hunt down a killer for one Little Novice Monk? Vajra Prajna Temple has countless enemies across the Jianghu. Can you really hunt them all down?’
’If that were their standard, Vajra Prajna Temple would be practically empty. All their disciples would be out avenging someone. If they died by accident, more would have to be sent out for revenge in a vicious cycle. In the end, the entire Sect would be wiped out.’
’So, logically speaking, only if the person killed held a very high status would it be worth a Major Sect’s time to track the killer across thousands of miles.’
’By that logic... was that dead Little Novice Monk the illegitimate son of the Abbot of Vajra Prajna Temple?’
"This demon from the Blood God Sect you’re hunting—does he have a name? What’s his strength level?" Chen Yuan asked.
Xing Shen and Xing Nan exchanged a glance. After Xing Nan gave a slight nod, Xing Shen said, "The man is a Hall Master of the Blood God Sect. His name is Gongyang Li, and he goes by the moniker ’Evil Bone Blood Slaughter.’"
Du Tianfeng frowned. "From what I know, a Hall Master of the Blood God Sect is a Martial Arts Grandmaster at the Primordial Pill Realm. Are you saying we’re going to hunt down a Martial Arts Grandmaster with just the people here?"
Xing Shen said coolly, "Rest assured, Lord Du. This humble monk has no desire to die, nor would I lead you all to your deaths.
That Gongyang Li was already severely wounded in Qin Province by an eminent monk from my Vajra Prajna Temple. Even his Primordial Pill was damaged, perhaps even completely destroyed. He no longer possesses his Primordial Pill Realm cultivation.
We’ve been tracking him this whole way. If Gongyang Li could still access his full power, he would have surely turned around to kill us. Instead, he has done nothing but flee, which is proof enough of his current state."
As Chen Yuan listened, he suddenly thought of something, and a peculiar glint appeared in his eyes.
’Monks aren’t supposed to lie, but there’s barely a word of truth coming out of these ones’ mouths!’